As a journalist, trained to remain skeptical and to seek truth, I never expected to experience anything unexplainable during my time as a dark tourist.
But I was wrong.
As Adam drives us further downtown to our next destination, the Hippodrome theater, I remember Alyssa’s story of her own haunting and wonder what, if anything, us dark tourists will encounter during our time there.
As we enter the corridor of the theater, Adam recounts its haunted history. He tells us that in 1928 a production fire destroyed most of the front half of the original building.
ADAM: “There’s screaming, there's fear, there's fire…”
As Adam speaks, I feel something touch my shoulder. It felt firm, and slightly electric, like someone had laid a hand on me and lightly shocked me.
I look around at my fellow dark tourists, and see that no one is standing near me. I brush it off as possibly a bug, and try to move on.
But then something else happens. I feel something light, almost like a piece of popcorn, fall down my shirt. I reach to grab it, feel it in my hand, then drop it on the ground. But when I looked down to see what it was, nothing was there.
Officially spooked from my first paranormal experience, I tell Adam what I had felt. He tells me that some of the spirits here are playful, and since we are standing next to the concession stand, a child spirit is probably throwing popcorn on me.
I’m just glad it wasn’t glass.
As we wrap up our eerie time at the theater, our final stop is Cameron Park.
Cameron Park is Waco’s crown jewel. It also is the most haunted place in Waco, Cindy tells me.
CINDY: “There’s been a lot of poltergeist activity out there and of course lots and lots of ghost stories. Jacob's Ladder, very haunted. There’s still stories where people will talk to me about this. They go up and down the ladder and get poked and grabbed by phantom hands.”
It just so happens that Jacob's Ladder is the last place Adam wants to show us.
As we gather around the ladder, Adam tells us a story about a ghostly entity named, “Grabby.” The legend goes that when the man was alive, he supposedly murdered dozens of pregnant women and threw them into the Brazos river to be carried away by the current, never to be found again.
Adam takes out his dowsing rods to begin a communication session, and us dark tourists all join together in a circle.
ADAM: “I know you’re very interested to get talked about, so listen, if I let you talk to a couple of these people tonight, are you going to be nice?”
ADAM: “Okay, he said no, that’s standard.”
Adam says Grabby likes attention, but that he isn’t a pleasant spirit. Still, he offers Grabby the opportunity to speak to us through the dowsing rods.
ADAM: “Alright Grabby, point to who you want to talk to…”
The dowsing rods slowly turn toward me.
ADAM: “I mean it almost makes sense, hold on, I’m going to go way over here this time. Once more, Grabby, point to who you want to talk to.”
Again, the rods turn toward me.
ADAM: “…It’s because he knows, he knows. That’s why it is.”
Convinced Grabby has taken an interest in me because I’m a journalist, Adam wants to see if Grabby will make his location known.
ADAM: “Grabby, point to where you’re standing.”
Once again, the rods turn toward me.
Everyone gets a kick out of Grabby’s interest in me, but I can’t help but remember Cindy’s stories of an entity grabbing women on the ladder. So, I’m happy to move along, having gotten my fill of phantom touches for the evening.
As the tour comes to an end, I feel a mix of emotions. Happy to have learned more of Waco’s history, confused about the unexplainable events that happened, and relieved that through it all, I had Adam, a trained professional, to guide me through it.
But if tours aren’t your thing, you can always become a paranormal investigator yourself this Halloween, all you need is your phone.
CINDY: “These smartphones are the best ghost hunting devices you can have right now. Take lots of pictures, take lots of videos, pay attention to how you’re feeling, you might capture something crazy.”
So whether you’re looking for a scary thrill, a way to celebrate the Halloween season, or to learn more about the local history of Waco, dark tourism has a place for everyone here in the heart of Texas.
And while the haunts and legends may stem from tragedy, like ghosts, Waco has carried on, just existing in a new way.
You can listen to all four chapters of Waco’s Haunted Heritage online at kwbu.org.
For 103.3 Waco Public Radio, I’m Autumn Jones.
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In this third installment of the Waco Haunted Heritage series, KWBU's Autumn Jones sets off on her first local ghost tour, experiences a spirit box communication session and witnesses the power of paranormal interactions. -
Continuing KWBU's four part Halloween series, reporter Autumn Jones dives deeper into the dark tourism industry by visiting the Dr Pepper museum to learn more about the buildings ghostly history and the deadly 1953 Waco tornado. -
In this four part Halloween series, KWBU's Autumn Jones investigates the dark tourism industry in Waco, explores local lore and legends and gets a taste of ghost hunting. In our first episode, Jones gets to know local paranormal investigator Cindy Little and ghost tour guide Alyssa Hawkinson.
